Protestants, Freemasons and invisibility
By Psyche | April 3, 2010
Saturday Signal: sifting the signal from the noise of the Internet’s occultural cacophony.
Last this week we had a guest post by Beth Winegarner – author,1 journalist and sociologist who is working on a guidebook for parents about teen culture, and a longtime Internet friend of mine – on the subject of occult profiling, and the harm it can cause.
Profiling is something we may not consciously reflect on, but it impacts how we live and what we do. For instance, I (rather obviously) use a pseudonym for most of my writing on esoteric subjects because I’m concerned about the impact it may have on my career in the world of finance. I don’t want that to be the case, but I understand that when I write about things like demons, Satanism, magick, and whatnot the average person isn’t going to be sympathetic to these subjects, and will likely have a negative view of them and, consequently, of me.
This is on the flip side, but if you didn’t get a chance to read it last week, check out “Occult Profiling: Where it comes from and why it’s worth fighting” now and please do share your thoughts and experiences.
Expanding our reception outside the confines of the blog, we find the following signals:
- Mercurius Politicus shows off a 1641 pamphlet with a handy “Protestant identification chart” illustrating several different types. Seems reasonably appropriate as the Christians are celebrating death at Spring, and I always get confused by which branch does which. They all worship Jesus, don’t they?
- Gyllene Gryningen has a post on “The Freemasonic origins of the Golden Dawn” with photographs and illustrations to elucidate various points.
- Dean Wilson writes about “Magical Literalism” in his blog Mishkan ha-Echad, specifically in regards to claims of invisibility. One might argue that the whole lot could be argued poetically, rather than absolutely. Where are the lines drawn, and why?
That’s it for this week, kids.
Found something fab? Please share it in the comments, or if you use delicious tag it “ahrfoundation” and we’ll take a look. Thanks!
Footnotes:
- Beth’s Sacred Sonoma: Sacred Sites and Alignments in Sonoma County, California
is excellent, read my review here. [back]
Related posts:
- Insanity, Grant Morrison, MacGregor Mathers, and tarot
- Teenagers and the occult: Survey request
- Colin Wilson, indigenous Pagans, William Burroughs, Golden Dawn, and Starfire
- Djinn, Crowley books, calendars and sex with ghosts
- Yin, phalluses and Crowley’s sexism
Category: Occulture, Saturday Signal
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Psyche – Thank you for all the work you put into ahrfoundation.org. It is very much appreciated!
Admirers of esoteric art, and those interested in Qabalah and spiritual alchemy, will most likely enjoy the interview with David Chaim Smith at Occult of Personality – http://www.occultofpersonality.net/david-chaim-smith/
Thanks again!
Thanks for your kind words, Greg.
Psyche, you’re doing the right thing. Finance is definitely a special case. My sister works in international finance and her colleagues don’t know a single thing about her personal life. (The fact is, she does nothing more daring than a few half-marathons.)
There’s probably a middle road for most of us when it comes to online reputation management. As long as the top 3 search results are safe for work, then you’re safe in your work.
I dislike sectioning off bits and pieces of myself, but I recognize it as necessary in my current circumstances.
It’s a double-edged sword though, if more “mainstream” type people shy away from referencing their interest in magick, and bizarre references remain unchecked, then there’s no avenue for change.